Hereafter
by Lady Pandora
Summary: Chris is still in the future trying to prevent Wyatt from turning evil, and his family - who are still unaware they are - don't exactly trust his sincerity. Things are about to get a whole lot more confusing when someone from his past arrives. Chris/OC *TBC at Wattpad*
1. Portal to the Past

_**Author's Note:** Yikes! My first Charmed fic. Took me a while to decide whether or not to put this one up, as I'm really no good at making up spells and such-like. :P I guess there'll be a few mistakes along the way and so I apologise profusely beforehand. _

_Bianca is my own character [I'd like to point out that she isn't the same Bianca from the show, I didn't like her, but I loved the name so much and wanted to use it], but the relationship with Chris is loosely based - very loosely - on that same relationship from the show.  
_

_So aside from my OC, Bianca Devlin, I own absolutely nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. If I did Chris would have had a much longer stay than one measly season. ;) Thank you to the creator of the show Constance M. Burge for giving me the inspiration to write this story. Charmed, you are missed._

_Enjoy! And please review - Good or Bad - all are welcome._

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_San Francisco, The Future, 2026_

** Portal to the Past**

Taking one step back Bianca Devlin ran a thoughtful gaze over the white chalk marking on the wall. The three interlocking arcs that started from the center of the shape and spread out to form three points was otherwise known as a Triquetra. It had been there for eight months now, since the day Chris had left, and there it would stay until he returned home. Every day she wandered up to the attic and every day she prayed for his safe return, while hoping, praying, that it would open up and he would come through with that devil-may-care grin on his face, safe and sound. She imagined how it would be, she would tell him how much she had missed him. She might even get round to finally telling him how she really felt about him.

Knowing that kind of thinking wasn't going to aid her cause any she concentrated her gaze onto the floor, where at either side of the marking she had placed two crystals; Rose Quartz which absorbed negative energy, and the other, Tiger Jade, was often used by the Wicca for protection. She had set them there incase anything should fancy their chances and hitch a ride during the journey, demon or otherwise, this way she would be safe from it's malevolent presence. In the middle of the floor forming an arc shape, candles stood waiting to be lit, but only when she was ready to recite the spell.

"Okay, I can do this," she muttered to herself. With an affirming nod of her dark head, she turned and walked over to the table where she began filling three small glass vials with the violet-colored potion she had spent the last few hours brewing. She needed one to open the portal, one to close it incase anything nasty came out before she dived in, and the third was for emergency. She hoped she wouldn't need to use the third. Three was a good number. At least that's what Chris always said.

She let go of a gentle sigh. It was hard to believe that eight months had passed since they had last seen one another. He had stood, where she did now, potion bottle in hand, not knowing if his journey to the past would succeed, or even if he would make it there at all.

_I have to do this, B. I can't let it go on. I can't let it happen. I won't. I've got to try and change things_. He had hugged her, _Be safe_, kissed the tip of her nose like he always did and she got that funny feeling in the pit of her stomach like she always did, and then she watched, with a fierce kind of pride and an aching in her chest, as he stepped into the portal and disappeared.

She hadn't heard anything from him since. He was twenty-two years in the past. The telepathic link they shared was useless given the time-frame. Not even the great Cosmos let alone SouthWestern Telecom could reconnect that line. A part of her believed that he had made it, if he hadn't, she was sure she would have been sent some sort of sign and thankfully, there had been nothing. She was adopting a No News Was Good News mentality. Even so, she was desperate to know that he was okay. If he was, and she had a feeling he really was, he would still be searching and fighting to save his older brother's future. It was the only reason he had gone back. To save Wyatt from becoming the evil monster that he was now.

But eight months was a long time and she missed him terribly. Worried even more. Life here without him was worse than ever. Wyatt was still up to his tricks and had paid her a few visits in the months since Chris had been gone. Naturally, he asked where his brother had got to, but she never let on. If she knew Wyatt - and she did - he would eventually work it out. She just prayed that Chris would make it back in time before he got a chance to, and that he had accomplished what he had set out to do.

Bianca tucked the emergency potion inside her jean-jacket pocket and picked up another vial containing a green-colored liquid. Unplugging the seal, she tipped her head back and drained the entire contents of the chamomile potion. The Wicca believed that chamomile stimulated intuition. She was hoping that once she arrived at her destination the telepathic link between Chris and her would be reconnected, strengthened, and they wouldn't have any problem sensing the other. Picking up the two remaining vials she moved into the center of the floor, positioning herself within the arc of candles. Without taking her eyes off the Triquetra's heart, she pointed to the first candle and drew an arc-shape in the air. Each of the candles lit in turn.

"Please let this work," she whispered to herself, knowing that this wasn't the greatest idea she'd ever had. She took a deep breath, drew back her arm and flung one of the potion bottles against the wall, hitting the Triquetra dead in it's center. The bottle shattered and it's contents spilled down the wall. It took only a moment for the familiar, cold air to seep from the mark and it's outline to shine like lights on an airfield runway. "Good start," she sighed in relief, then began to recite the spell.

_Earth, water, fire, air,_

_ Aid me in this task I dare,_

_ Where Chris wanders, let me see,_

_ Take me there, carry me. _

The cold air was now whipping around the room, mist had formed and was swirling wildly in the center of the Triquetra, while the arc of candles flickered and the lights surrounding the circle became so painfully bright that for a moment she had to look away. The room begin to vibrate around her. The Triquetra had opened up. A gaping, swirling, inky blackness yawned before her and the air in the room grew so close, that she could feel sweat trickling inbetween her shoulder-blades. Or maybe it was just nerves.

"Well," she said trying to put a cheerful spin on it, "nothing nasty's popped out to say Hi, so I'll take that as my cue." She tucked the second bottle of potion safely inside her pocket, along with the other one and then took a tentative step towards the inky blackness of the portal. "If this doesn't work, Chris," she muttered under her breath, "I have no idea what I'm going to do. I just pray that we both make it back." She took another deep breath and gingerly put one foot inside the portal, testing it with her toes. She was surprised to find that it was somewhat warm. "Huh. Not as bad as I thought. Okay, here goes nothing..." She stepped inside, the portal swallowed her up and then promptly closed behind her.

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"_Oooff_!"

Bianca came to the decision as her butt hit the ground with a hard thump, that she really didn't care much for time-travel. Too painful. And as for the motion sickness, well, she didn't care for that either. The only thing time-travel had going for it, was that it had taken all of three seconds to reach her destination, and that the motion sickness wore off as quickly as it started. Now all she had was the beginnings of a headache which wasn't great but nowhere as bad as the three-second-sickness, and, she smacked her lips together, a really weird taste in her mouth.

_What's that about?_

As she got to her feet, slapping the dirt from the seat of her pants, she took a first quick scan of her surroundings. If she'd been expecting to see the attic which she had just left, then she was about to be sorely disappointed. Because there was no attic. There were no old sofas, or an antique armoire, no family heirlooms and definitely no wooden pedestal, so that meant no Book of Shadows, either. Instead, she found herself standing in the middle of what appeared to be some kind of secluded wooded area.

_Well, this isn't right_.

She scanned the area again, an abundance of green space, lots of trees and park benches and through the gathering of trees she could see kids on rollerblades and couples walking their dogs.

_Oh-kay, so not exactly where I'd hoped, but at least let me be in San Fran._

Glancing over her left shoulder, she caught sight of a massive bronze Buddha and the distinct, sweet smell of cherry blossom was ripe as it assaulted her nose. Both these things brought a smile to her face. She had landed in the Japanese Tea Garden at the Golden Gate Park. She was in San Francisco.

"Yes!," she cheered, giving herself a hi-five and then gleefully rubbing her hands together. _Now all I have to do is concentrate and find Chris. _She inhaled a deep cleansing breath, closed her eyes and was about to start emptying her mind which would make sensing him easier, when a rustle in the trees interrupted her. _Probably a rabbit or something._ She opened her eyes ready to shoo the creature away, and was somewhat startled to see a tall figure standing a few feet away and dressed in a brown, raggedy cloak and very little else. Embedded in the center of his forehead was a bright blue crystal, his eyes glowed red and his teeth were pointed and rotting. All-in-all, he was a damn ugly thing.

_That is definitely not a rabbit, so...a something then._ A demon something she didn't like the look of. The demon took a step forward and Bianca took one back.

"Uh-oh," she murmured.

"I'm going to kill you, witch," the demon hissed.

That didn't sound good. And what, was she wearing a sign? "But you don't even know me," Bianca quipped. Chris always said if her fighting skills or her powers couldn't get her out of danger, then her snarky wit would do it every time. So it couldn't do any harm to try. "And besides," she added, "I just got here. How about we get acquainted first and _then_ we can discuss the killing thing, huh? Whadda ya say?"

The demon bared it's rotting teeth, growled and came at her.

Not this time then.

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_Reviews make me smile._ :)


	2. Tracking the Demon

_Big thank you to **AkashaCullen26** for reviewing._ :) _Once again if there are any mistakes with the timeline I do apologise. And again, Bianca is not the character from the show. Thank you! Enjoy this chapter!_ :)

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_San Francisco, The Present 2004_

**Tracking the Demon**

Up in the attic of the Halliwell manor, Paige Matthews, part-Whitelighter and one third of the all powerful sister witches known as the Charmed Ones, was flipping through the Book of Shadows, frustrated that it wasn't showing her anything useful, such as how to prepare a potion to vanquish a Yakkarth demon.

Piper Halliwell turned away from Wyatt her two-year-old son now happily playing in his playpen, and rubbed one hand over her pregnant belly. As she flopped down in the nearest seat she cast her youngest sister a pointed look. "You flip those pages with any more vigour, you're gonna flip that book right out the window."

Paige shot her a cheeky scowl back. "I've been through the thing twice, Piper. There's a whole page on Yakkarth demons, it tells us everything we need to know about the blue crystal like the one we saw on our not-so-friendly demon's ugly forehead. According to the book, it's where they store their victims energies after sucking the life force out of them. There's even a very interesting passage on how they dine on their flesh afterward," she pulled a face, "but not a stitch on how to vanquish them. Because _that_ would be too easy."

"Well, clearly Mom and Grams didn't come across many Yakkarths in their time, which would explain why they never got round to making a potion," put in Phoebe Halliwell, the middle sister. She was standing by the attic window looking down onto the street below. "It doesn't matter, we'll think of something. We always do."

"See?," Piper said to Paige, as she shook a finger in Phoebe's direction. "That's what I'm talking about. Good old-fashioned positive thinking. We'll do a spot of scrying and if that doesn't work, then we cast a seek and find spell."

"And if _that_ doesn't work?," Paige wanted to know, planting one hand on her hip.

"Then it's back to the drawing board. Isn't that how we do things around here?," the eldest Charmed One said.

"I guess." Paige shrugged and sighed. "Maybe I'm just being a little testy."

"Oh, you think?"

Paige shot her sister another scowl, then threw in a smile. "I just don't like the idea of some demon lurking the streets, waiting to pounce on the next unsuspecting girl."

"None of us do, sweetie," Phoebe said, turning away from the window.

"What about you?," Piper said, arms folded over her swollen belly, as she turned to their Whitelighter. Or as Paige had so aptly named him, their 'Neurotic' Whitelighter. "You haven't had a whole lot to say on the matter."

From his seat on the sofa, Chris Perry glanced up and met Piper's eyes. Normally they were a soft, gentle brown right now they just looked agitated. He wondered if he was the reason behind that. If he was neurotic, he had good cause to be. Ever since he had showed up eight months before, the sisters - including Leo their ex-Whitelighter - had questioned his arrival from the future and mistrusted everything he said and did. Couple that with the pressure of trying to work out who had turned his older brother Wyatt evil, and it was fair to say that over the months he had become so mentally exhausted the strain of keeping the reason behind his journey here a secret had started to take it's toll. Until the day he hadn't been able to take any more of their probing and told them the truth. It had felt like a huge weight had been lifted. Or part of a weight, anyway. They still didn't know that he was Wyatt's younger brother. Piper and Leo's son. The part-Witch, part-Whitelighter baby that Piper was carrying.

Chris felt lonely. He was surrounded by his family and yet he felt like a stranger to them all. Their suspicions hurt, even if he did understand the reason behind their distrust. He had thought that by telling them why he was here they would have eased up on him some. They had to a certain degree, but now instead of the usual, _Why are you here, Chris_? _Who sent you, Chris_? now he was being bombarded with _How do you know Wyatt, Chris_? and _How do we know that you're not the evil one, Chris_?

He was so tired. So mentally and physically tired. Having to prove yourself 24/7 was wearing him down. So much so, that over the last few days, since he had told them all about future evil Wyatt; he had found himself thinking about home. Even if home was bad, and his brother was evil, his mom was dead and his father was never around. But in spite of that, there was one shining light, one good and positive thing. The one thing he had missed every single day over the last few months. His best friend, Bianca. If anything had kept him going, it was thinking about her.

"Well?," Piper pressed.

Chris knew his recent revelation about Wyatt had a lot to do with Piper's mood-swings of late and that he shouldn't take offence when she snapped at him. But he felt guilty about causing her such distress, especially when she was six months pregnant with him. That was something else. The fact that she was six months pregnant. It meant he only had another three months, four tops, to find out who was responsible for turning Wyatt evil. If he was still here when she went into labor, then not only had his mission failed, but he had also put his future self at risk. If he died, then it wouldn't just be his destiny at stake. The Charmed Ones, including Leo, would all be at risk, too. As would Wyatt. It was safe to say that the pressure was on.

He jerked his shoulders carelessly. "You seem to have it all worked out. Scry, spell, vanquish."

"Figures you'd say that," Piper replied, her tone dry.

Chris sighed. "What do you want me to say, Piper? Seems every time I open my mouth around here all I get is a backlash, anyway."

"Can you blame us?"

Chris's pale green eyes wandered over to Leo who was leaning up against the armoire at the far side of the room. Until a few months ago, Leo Wyatt had been the sisters Whitelighter. Every Wiccan witch had a Whitelighter. Whitelighters were angels. People who had done good things in their lives. Leo's sacrifice - he had died a Medic during the Second World War - was rewarded, he was to help young witches find their destiny and control their supernatural gifts. He was a guardian, protector and guide to his many charges, with the power to heal and orb anywhere he wanted to, while also being able to sense their whereabouts. After five years of guiding the all-powerful Charmed Ones, he was rewarded further by becoming an even more superior being - an Elder. Elders didn't live on Earth. But Leo liked to orb down every now and then to keep contact with his family. More importantly, his estranged wife Piper and their two-year-old son, Wyatt.

What Leo didn't know, was that Chris had played a part in orchestrating his ascension from Whitelighter to Elder. Chris knew he had his suspicions, though. Becoming the sisters new Whitelighter had been the only way he could manipulate himself into their lives, enabling him to forge ahead with his mission to save Wyatt.

"And what's that supposed to mean?," he bristled.

"It means we're all still reeling from what you told us. It's a lot to take in, Chris. As if you showing up here wasn't bad enough, you then tell us that Wyatt, _my son_, turns evil in the future. How are we supposed to react to you?"

"You could all start by being a bit nicer, that wouldn't go amiss," Chris shot back and he wasn't being gentle.

"I think what Leo's trying and failing to say," Phoebe deftly interjected, as she turned away from the window and made her way over to Paige, "is that it isn't helping our cause any that you can't tell us much about future events. About why or even _how_ Wyatt turns evil. We want to help you, Chris, but we don't know how. Because when we ask you questions all you say is – "

"Future consequences," Piper said automatically, with a roll of her eyes. "It's frustrating."

The comment stung and Chris felt his jaw tighten. He really was growing tired of the constant badgering and mistrust. Why couldn't they just trust him? Why was he forever having to prove himself?

"As much as I don't agree with him being here," Leo cut in, "you know he can't tell you anything that could jeopardise everyone's destiny."

If Chris's mouth had of been open, his jaw would have hit the floor. He turned his disbelieving eyes in Leo's direction. "What, so now you're sticking up for me?"

"As an ex-Whitelighter and an Elder I understand the consequence of how bad it could be if you revealed too much to the girls."

Chris was stunned. He gave his head a little shake. "Y'know...I really don't know whether I'm coming or going with you people."

"Yeah," drawled Paige, "but you'll get used to it. I did."

"Hey," Phoebe complained, giving her a nudge, "we weren't mean to you." She frowned and added, "Were we?"

"No," Paige replied, nudging her back. "Not intentionally, anyway. I understood how difficult it was for you and Piper to discover you had a half-sister after you'd just lost Prue."

"It was a lot to take in," Piper agreed, meeting Paige's eyes. The two sisters shared a warm smile. Three years before during a demon attack they hadn't prepared for Piper and Phoebe had lost their older sister. Just a matter of weeks went by when they discovered that they had a long-lost half-sister. Their mother'd had an affair with her Whitelighter and fallen pregnant, and because back then the coupling was seriously frowned upon - things hadn't changed that much, Piper and Leo'd had a fight on their hands to prove their love - she was forced to give the baby up for adoption, while Sam, Paige's natural father, was punished in the only way a Whitelighter could be. He had his wings clipped.

"We could have been nicer," Piper surmised. "Or at least I could." While she had found it difficult to accept that Prue was gone and that she and Phoebe had another sister, Phoebe however, had welcomed Paige with open arms. If it hadn't of been for her, Piper doubted that The Power of Three would have been restored. "A bit more trust would have helped," Piper admitted. "We had a few bumps along the way. But you know we couldn't love you any more than we do."

"You know it," Phoebe agreed, giving her younger sister a squeeze.

"Aw, shucks," Paige said all mock-modesty, "now I'm blushing."

Piper chuckled. "Which is why," she turned her attention back to Chris, "you shouldn't take any of what we say too personally. Like Leo said, we understand you can't tell us much. If anything. And that in itself leads to mistrust. It's wrong, I know. But it's hard for us, Chris."

Chris sighed. "Because it's not for me? Y'know I didn't have to come here."

"Yeah," Leo said, pushing himself off the armoire, 'but you did. And that's something else, why you came. Why you felt the need to come here and tell us that my son is evil in the future."

_Because he's my brother and no matter what he's done I care about what happens to him. What happens to all of us_. But of course, he didn't say that. Couldn't. Instead, his pale green eyes narrowed as he stared at the Elder. He knew it was ridiculous, but the 'my son' comment stung far more than the one he had made about Chris showing up. It was ridiculous because Leo didn't have a clue who he was. It was ridiculous because he couldn't blame this Leo for future Leo's mistakes. Or could he? After all, this Leo was caring and a doting father, whereas future Leo was a cold, unfeeling man. Maybe the journey here would give him the answers he craved, too.

The Elder's blue eyes were looking right at him, as if he were hoping to find out all of his secrets. Anyone else would have squirmed under that probing gaze, but not Chris. If he had learned anything over his twenty-two years, it was to not show any sign of weakness, to stand his ground. He had honed this quality, fine-tuned it and turned it into his armor of sorts. Bianca had once told him that 'cocky arrogance' was not a quality to brag about.

Thinking about her brought a gentle curving smile to his lips. He didn't think it was possible that he could miss her as much as he did. Then he met Leo's eyes and was abruptly brought back into reality.

'To help save him maybe,' he said, answering his question. 'Plus, I thought you'd want to know. Seeing as how he's your son and everything,' Chris all but spat out. 'Although, the reception I've had since I got here, I'm beginning to wonder why I even bothered. What do I care if he turns evil?'

'Is it any wonder why we don't trust you, when you say things like that,' Leo said almost disgusted, shaking his head.

A faint smirk played over Chris's lips. 'So now we're back to hating me again.'

'Just for the record, no one here hates you. We don't even know you. Just quit being so damn arrogant,' Leo said abruptly. 'And lose the smirk.'

"What, so I can't even smile now?," Chris wondered.

'Actually, I'm of the belief that you should do it more often,' piped up Paige from her perch behind the Book of Shadows. When Chris cast her a puzzled look, she shrugged. 'I happen to think you have a pretty great smile. It wouldn't hurt to show those dimples some more, y'know.'

In spite of his clash with Leo, Chris felt a spark inside of him and he smiled at her. She gave him a wink. It was just a tiny comment, but it meant more to him than any of them could ever know. Because it gave him hope. It wasn't the first time she had said something like that. He could remember a time when he'd been a lot younger and she'd made the very same 'dimples' comment. Of course, none of them knew that, either.

_Well, at least Aunt Paige is trying to be nice_, he thought, while she went back to her flipping of the pages. Only clearly, Piper's remark had made an impact, as there wasn't as much vigour this time round.

'Okay,' Piper held up her hands, 'y'know what, my blood pressure is high enough, so can we please leave the quibbling and trust issues for another time?' She shot a pointed look from Leo back to Chris and back again. 'Like say, when we don't have a demon to vanquish?'

'Fine by me,' Chris murmured.

'That's something else about this book,' Paige said, one eyebrow arched as she scowled at the well-worn, browned page in front of her. 'How there's always at last six names for the same thing. Like, a Ward for instance, just another name for a Portal. Doesn't anyone in the magic kingdom know that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line?'

Phoebe and Piper shared a smile. They'd often felt the same frustration with the book, particularly during their early days of being witches. Phoebe patted her arm consolingly. 'Down, girl. Remember, the Book of Shadows plays for our team. Now, let's take a deep breath and focus on what we're trying to find.'

'What we're trying to find isn't in here,' Paige drawled.

'Focus.'

'Fine,' Paige huffed. 'But I reserve the future right to whine.'

"Understood," Phoebe said and began flipping her way through the book.

'Y'know, that book won't tell you everything you need to know,' Chris said, getting up from the sofa. 'Sometimes you just have to use your own initiative.'

'Any thoughts on that?,' Phoebe asked.

'Like Piper said, scry or spell. You know where the demon likes to hang out, you know the type of person it likes to feed off - '

'The only thing we don't know is how to vanquish it,' Phoebe told him. 'So, again, any thoughts on that?'

Chris sighed. 'No, but I'm - '

'Not helping. Maybe you should sit this one out, sweetie,' Phoebe said, peering at him. 'In fact, y'know what, you don't look so good. Are you feeling all right?'

'I'm fine,' Chris answered, looking somewhat puzzled. 'Why?'

'You look a little pale, that's all,' she said.

'You do look tired,' Piper agreed.

'Well, that's because I am.'

'Uhuh. Then maybe you should lay off the Saving Wyatt mission for a while,' suggested Piper. 'If he doesn't turn evil for another fifteen, twenty, whatever, years; then you've got plenty time to get on it.'

Chris looked at her. His mother. While he was touched that she was concerned about his welfare, the warm feeling didn't last. In fact, it dissipated as soon as it began. Because time was the one thing that he didn't have on his side. But once again - she didn't know that.

'I'll be fine,' he dismissed it. 'Nothing that a couple hours rest won't put right.'

'We can manage without you,' Phoebe insisted. 'Go get some shut-eye,' she said and reached out to pat his arm. As she did, the premonition hit her. She closed her eyes and let the pictures enter her head, noting each and every one. Soaking it all up, as they flashed before her in her mind's eye. When she opened her eyes again, her sisters, Leo and Chris were all looking at her expectantly. Waiting to hear what it was she had seen.

'C'mon, we're waiting,' Paige said.

'Okay...first up, that was weird,' she said and met Chris's eyes, before glancing at her hand on his arm. She carefully drew it back.

'I'd say,' he quipped, 'it's not often I get touched around here. If at all.'

Phoebe eyed him. 'That's not what I meant. I was talking about how I had the premonition when I touched you.'

'Well, that'll teach you. You won't do that again in a hurry.'

'Cut it out,' Phoebe said and was about to slap his arm, but decided against it, wagging her finger at him instead.

'Was Chris in the premonition?,' asked Paige.

'No,' Phoebe answered.

Leo frowned and looked thoughtfully at the young Whitelighter. Chris caught the look, sighed heavily, gave his eyes a roll and turned only briefly away from the Elder's probing stare. 'Not the Is-Chris-Evil thing again,' he said, sounding exasperated. 'Aren't you getting bored with this?'

'Guilty conscience, Chris?,' Leo wondered.

'Okay, what?,' Chris snapped.

'Shush, the pair of you!,' Piper intervened. 'Save those trust issues for later. Damn, I hate repeating myself.' She turned to Phoebe, waved her hand. 'Go on.'

'I saw our demon,' said Phoebe matter-of-factly, 'blue crystal and all, and a young woman.'

'Was she hurt?,' Paige asked.

'She didn't appear to be,' answered Phoebe.

'Did you see where they were?,' asked Leo.

Phoebe nodded. 'I recognised the landmark. Japanese Tea Garden, Golden Gate Park.'

'Okay,' Piper said, already on her feet, 'let's do this. Leo look after Wyatt, Chris you stay here and rest, Paige grab some potion and let's go.'

'Uh, Piper? We didn't make a potion,' Paige reminded her.

'_Oh-kay_, then just grab Phoebe and orb us out of here. C'mon,' she said impatiently.

'Piper, maybe you shouldn't go,' Chris intervened. 'I mean, you're - '

'That's right, Chris, I'm pregnant!,' snapped Piper. 'But, newsflash, it doesn't mean I'm completely useless.'

Chris held up his hands in a placating gesture and backed off. He knew when to with her and when not to.

'When are you people going to understand that being pregnant does not mean you have to treat me any differently?,' Piper was now saying. 'I'm tired of being wrapped in cotton wool. I'm one third of the most powerful witches of all time, for crying out loud! A little pregnancy isn't gonna change that.'

'Uh, actually, Piper,' Leo broke in softly. Now it was his turn. 'I agree with Chris.'

'There's a first,' muttered Chris, folding his arms over his chest.

Piper turned a sharp eye onto her Elder husband. 'Now is _not_ the time for you to start agreeing with Chris.'

'I just don't want you getting you hurt,' Leo said soothingly. 'It's not like when you were carrying Wyatt, you don't have a force-field with this baby to protect you.'

'Uhuh.' She was well aware of his buttery tone. 'And as sweet as that is, you know I'm going anyway, right?,' she said, determined.

'Piper - '

'Ah.' Piper held up one warning finger and Leo, like Chris, closed his mouth and gave up. 'Paige. Orb. Now.'

Paige looked at Leo, waiting to see if he was going to further intervene, but he only gave her a hopeless shrug and went over to pick Wyatt up out of the play-pen. 'Oh-kay, but what exactly are we going to do when we get there?," she asked. "No potions, no vanquish, remember?'

'Paige is right, Piper,' Phoebe cut in moving towards her sister. 'The last time you blew up the Yakkarth it just reformed.'

'I know that. But let's just concentrate on saving our innocent and we can worry about the vanquish later. Paige, are you gonna orb us or do I have to call a cab?,' Piper sniped.

'Okay, okay, keep your hair on,' Paige snickered. 'Jeez, those pregnancy hormones are rife today. Here's a thought, save some of the 'tude for the demon, we may not need a vanquishing potion,' she added as Piper and Phoebe held onto her arm and she orbed the three of them out of the attic and to their destination.

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_Reviews make me grin like a Cheshire cat_! :D


	3. Vanquishing the Demon

**Yugiohobsessed, **thank you for reviewing. I didn't think anyone was still interested in this story. ^_^ Here's another chapter, just for you. Enjoy!

* * *

**Vanquishing The Demon**

Bianca was beginning to lose her patience with the demon. She had fought it, punched it, kicked it and even tried the good old-fashioned girlie way and kicked it where she thought it might hurt. Only it hadn't, so it led her to presume that it didn't have _those_ such body parts. Instead, it had repaid her by swiping out at her with one thick arm, sending her flying backwards into a bush.

Which hurt. A _lot._

'Don't make this any harder than it has to be, witch!' the demon hissed.

Bianca quickly regained herself and tried to ignore the searing pain in her back. Great, she was going to be covered in bruises this time tomorrow. 'Okay, y'know what,' she said sounding irritated. 'I don't have time for this. This is _not_ why I came here.'

'You came here to die,' the demon said.

'Uh, actually, no.'

'I'm happy to disappoint you then.'

She was about to use her telekinetic power and send him flying on his ugly ass, when the blue crystal embedded in its forehead began to glow. Bianca's eyes were drawn to it. In fact, she found herself unable to _stop_ looking at it. The glow was soft and soothing, enveloping her in its warm, milky goodness. And somewhere in the back of her mind she realized that was probably what it was supposed to do. Lull its victim into a sense of false security.

_And it's working._

She could feel her body relaxing, straining towards the demon, her eyes never leaving the crystal. Worse still, she could feel all of her energy, all of her willpower draining from her body.

_This is really not good. And yet, I'm powerless to fight it._

'That's right, witch,' the demon cooed. 'Come to me...'

It didn't matter how hard she tried to fight it, how much she tried to focus on something other than the mesmerizing crystal, she knew it was too late, it had captured her, drawn her in and was now sucking the very life out of her.

_This can't be happening. I didn't come here to die! Chris...?_ was her last thought as she felt her eyelids grow heavy. So heavy, so weak and limp, that she wasn't aware of the three women who had just orbed in behind her.

But the demon had. He took his intense red eyes from his victim as her body slumped lifelessly to the floor. 'The Charmed Ones,' the demon sneered. 'Forever interfering in my plans.'

'Hey, look at that,' said Piper cheerfully, 'he remembered us.'

With one eye on the demon, Phoebe motioned to Paige. 'The girl, is she dead?'

'I don't know,' Paige said, her tone urgent, her eyes resting on the lifeless body at the demon's feet. 'I hope not. I can't heal her if she's dead.'

'You remember this?' Piper said and with the flick of one hand she blew up the Manticore. Again. Only...he didn't blow up.

The demon cackled, glancing only briefly at the scorched mark in the center of its chest. 'Ouch,' it scoffed. 'It stings.'

'Oh,' Piper said, looking and sounding surprised, 'well, _that_ didn't happen before.'

'Stupid witches. You think I wasn't prepared for your interference? I took precautions.'

The Manticore took a threatening step towards the sisters, the sisters took a step back. Piper was attempting to blow it up again - still nothing, Phoebe was preparing for the battle she knew was coming and Paige was keeping an eye on the girl. Who, she was glad to see, was now moving if only slightly. She had to get to her. If she was hurt, she needed to be healed.

'Piper, maybe you should try freezing it?' suggested Phoebe as the demon continued in their direction and they continued in theirs. Much to Paige's chagrin, further away from the girl.

'I suppose you think because I can't blow you to smithereens that you've won,' Piper said to the Manticore and ignoring Phoebe, as she threw in one last blow-up attempt. Nada. Not a spark. 'Got quite an ego, huh? Guess you have to have something to make you feel good about yourself. 'Cos those damn awful teeth won't get you any luck with the ladies.'

'Or you could try talking him to death,' Phoebe said between gritted teeth. 'What's wrong with you? Freeze it!'

But Piper carried on with her brainstorm. Saying the first thing, the most wackiest ridiculous thing, that entered her head. It was risky, she knew. But since she and her sisters had showed up, the Manticore hadn't once looked back at the young girl, she had noted. She had served her purpose. Or so the demon thought anyway. Because as his attention was now fixated on Piper he couldn't see that the young girl was moving, attempting to sit up, while shaking her head. The less attention the demon paid to her the better, as far as Piper was concerned.

While Piper did whatever it was she was doing, it was working and Paige took her opportunity to rush over to the girl, who was now sitting upright, groaning, her head in her hands, her long dark hair curtaining her face. _Thank God, she's alright_.

The demon snarled. 'Don't tempt my rage, witch. You will be sorry.'

'Oh, for crying out loud,' Piper exclaimed. 'Do you have to sound so hokey? That little comment went out about two hundred years ago.'

'Piper!' hissed Phoebe as the demon's face began to contort with rage. 'What the hell...? Please tell me you know what you're doing? Because I sure don't!'

Piper had given up on the blow-up plan, it was clear whatever black magic he'd pulled, had worked. Seeing that Paige had reached the young girl, she flicked her fingers attempting to freeze the demon instead, and wasn't surprised to find that that didn't work either. _Oh, shoot. He's good._

'Are you alright?' Paige gasped as she dropped to the young woman's side, who was attempting to get to her feet. 'Here let me help you. Easy now.'

Bianca's head was swimming some and she still felt a trifle weak. But she was alive, and that had to count for something. She took the hand that was offered to her and stood. 'Whoa...blood rush.'

'Take it easy. You've been through quite an ordeal.'

'Tell me about it,' Bianca muttered as the stranger helped her to her feet. She shook back her hair and was just about to thank the stranger for her kindness, when she saw who the stranger was. Okay, so she was, you know, younger, and her hair was a different color, but it was definitely her. It was Chris's Aunt Paige!

Paige was giving the petite and very pretty, young woman a worried frown. 'Are you okay?' She was looking at Paige kind of funny, as if she couldn't believe it was her, or had seen a ghost or was about to envelop her in a bear-hug or something. 'I think maybe I should get you out of here. Take you somewhere safe.' She put her arm around her. She was worried that she was suffering a concussion.

A noise behind Bianca made her turn her head. She saw the ugly demon that had almost succeeded in sucking the life out of her and then she saw 'Aunt' Phoebe plant a booted heel, smashing it into the demon's knee. The demon roared in pain, buckled and dropped to it's knees, making it roar further.

'Ha! You didn't count on the ol' Jimmy Choo heel to the knee trick, did ya?'

Bianca turned her attention to the woman who had just made the gleeful comment. _Piper._ Her eyes dropped to her swollen, rounded belly and something inside of Bianca tugged sharp. _Chris's mom_. Had she not of still been a little dizzy after the demon encounter, she might have spent more time realizing how incredibly surreal this moment was. She had come here to find Chris, almost been killed by a demon and ended up being saved by Chris's family. Could Destiny be any more kind?

Just then Piper spun her head around and saw Paige, her arm around the young woman. 'Paige, get her out of here!' she ordered.

'No!' Bianca protested, turning her worried eyes onto Paige. 'You can't just leave them!'

'Don't worry,' Paige assured her, 'I'm not going anywhere without them, just hold on tight, okay? And, uh, I'll explain later.' There was no time to explain the whole I'm-a-witch-and-I'm-going-to-orb-you-to-safety thing. Mere moments later, Paige had orbed both herself and the young woman behind Phoebe and Piper. 'Grab my hand!' she yelled at her sisters.

Piper did, but Phoebe was too busy ducking a swipe from the demon that Bianca knew would have her on the ground, had she not of ducked. 'Get out of here, Paige!' she yelled over her shoulder. 'Orb Piper and the girl to safety and come back for me!'

Bianca didn't know who was the most stubborn or the most hot-blooded or the most determined of the sisters. Actually, that was a lie. She did. Piper was the determined one, Phoebe was definitely the most high-spirited and Paige, she was by far the most stubborn. She knew that her inclination to go off and fight demons all of her own accord, without telling her sisters were she was going, had been the reason behind many a heated argument between the Charmed Ones. But right now, Phoebe was wearing that crown.

'I'm not leaving you, Phoebe! Grab Piper's hand!' Paige insisted.

'Phoebe!' Piper yelled. 'Do it! Save the heroics for another time! You're gonna get yourself killed!'

The demon lifted one hand and began bouncing the fire-ball that had just appeared there, a wicked grin splitting his ugly face. 'Your sister is right. You will die!' And then he drew back his hand and flung the ball at Phoebe.

'Fire-ball!' Paige yelled, holding up one hand, palm out. The energy ball orbed, turned full circle and headed towards the demon. But it seemed he had come prepared for Paige's orbing ability, too. With a wave of his hand, the ball disintegrated into ash at his feet.

His evil cackle filled the air. 'Well, it would seem that I have gotten one over on the Charmed Ones.'

'This is getting ridiculous!' Piper yelled. 'Phoebe, get your ass over here. _Now_!'

As the demon began bouncing another fire-ball, she didn't need to be told again. She turned and raced towards Piper's outstretched hand. And immediately stopped dead in her tracks again.

'Phoebe? What are you doing? C'mon!' Paige urged her.

But Phoebe didn't move towards her sisters, instead she turned and began walking back towards the demon.

'Uh...Phoebe, we're this way, honey,' Paige coached.

'What the...?' said Piper in disbelief. 'Why's she acting like a Stepford Wife? Phoebe Halliwell, git your stubborn ass- '

'It's the crystal,' Bianca spoke. 'It's drawing her in.'

It was true. The blue crystal embedded in the demons forehead had begun glowing and was giving off its warm and milky, soothing aura. Phoebe was acting the exact way Bianca had been only minutes before. And that wasn't good.

'Phoebe!' Piper yelled.

'Don't look at the crystal!' Bianca warned Paige and her. Her mind was racing. She was trying so hard to think of something, anything, that would snap Phoebe out of the trance the crystal had her under. After all, it was her fault it had drawn her in. If they hadn't shown up to save her, Phoebe wouldn't be in danger now.

'Paige, we have to do something!' Piper cried, she was attempting her blow-up, her freeze, aiming for the crystal, but like before - nothing was working.

Bianca absentmindedly stuffed one hand in her jacket pocket and her fingers grazed the glass of the potion bottles. _Think, Bianca. Think!_ As her fingers rubbed over the smooth glass, the idea came to her. She didn't know why, it was ridiculous. She didn't even think it would work, but _damnit_, she had to try.

She plucked one of the bottles from her pocket. 'I've got an idea,' she told the sisters. 'Give me some room.'

Piper and Paige didn't have a clue what she was going to do, but they stepped away from her. Focusing with every ounce of energy she had left, Bianca drew back her arm and hurled the vial at the demon's head. More to the point, the crystal and said the first words that came to her. 'Aim for the target, the crystals heart, With this blessed potion, uh...I'll...tear you apart?' _Damn that was lame_.

'The potion bottle slammed the crystal, dead center and the demon let out an enraged shriek. Moments later, with a great burst of heat and flame, it exploded. It was gone.

Lame. But it had worked.

'Okay, I gotta say..._Wow_,' Paige gasped in disbelief and looked at Bianca. 'You just vanquished that demon.'

'Uh, yeah, I did, didn't I?' said Bianca, still somewhat puzzled that the potion and lame spell had _actually_ worked.

'What the...?' Piper began and looked at the young woman by her side. 'Okay, _who_ are you?'

'Someone that just saved my life,' said Phoebe, who had snapped out of her trance and was walking over to her sisters. She smiled at the woman. 'That's some spin you got there. You ever think of bowling for the Giants?'

'I was gonna try out for the Red Sox once,' Bianca smiled back.

Phoebe laughed. 'My luck you didn't.'

'Actually, if it hadn't of been for me you wouldn't...what I'm trying to say is, I think _I'm_ the one that should be handing out thanks,' Bianca said.

'No, that's still us. Do you have any idea how hard we've worked at trying to find a potion to vanquish that thing?' Paige said to her.

_Knowing you, Paige, you'd have worked pretty damn hard._ 'I can imagine,' she smiled.

'What _was_ that potion?' Piper wanted to know, still clearly stunned that this strange innocent had just vanquished their Manticore demon.

'Uh...dandelion and burdock root,' Bianca offered. 'And I think, a sprig or two of catnip. Maybe a pinch of - '

'Catnip?' repeated Piper, eyebrows shooting upward. 'Catnip? You vanquished a powerful demon with _catnip_?'

Phoebe chuckled. 'Yes she did. Well, I gotta say, I'm stunned, but I'm impressed. What's your name?'

'Bianca,' she told her.

'Okay, well, it's nice to meet you, Bianca. Pity the circumstance wasn't a little nicer. I'm Phoebe and you've met my sisters, Piper and Paige,' Phoebe smiled warmly at her. 'Are you hurt?'

'My back doesn't feel so good,' Bianca admitted, giving it a rub from where she landed on it after the demon had attacked. 'Probably just bruised.'

'Well, I vote we get Bianca back to the manor and see what we can do about her injuries,' Paige said. 'Least we can do.'

'Uhuh,' agreed Piper. 'And I need to write those ingredients down and do you think you can remember the _exact_ words that you recited?'

Paige groaned and rolled her eyes. 'Get over it, Piper,' she said as everyone held onto one another, ready for her to orb them all home.

'C'mon. _Catnip_. Seriously. Am I the _only_ one that's having trouble getting past this?'

'_Yes_!' her sisters chimed, as all four orbed out back to the safety of the manor.


	4. Old Friends

**Old Friends**

Once they were all safely back in the attic, Paige checked over Bianca's wounds. Her lower back was covered with a multitude of bruises and there was a deep cut on her left side. It looked nasty, but nothing too serious.

'I'll have you better in no time,' she assured her. 'Just relax.'

But Bianca tugged her shirt down before Paige got a chance to do anything. 'I'm fine, really,' she said, dismissing it. 'Besides, they're not even hurting anymore.' She turned around, staring wide-eyed at the huge attic space. 'I just feel a little tired. Woozy.' It was exactly as she remembered. The antique armoire and old sofas were still there, and there was a cherry-wood Grandfather clock that she presumed must have gotten thrown out before she had moved in, as she didn't recognize it. And there, in front of the stained-glass bay-window, stood the wooden pedestal and on it, the Book of Shadows.

Bianca bit down on her lower lip and smiled. Wow, time-travel was a bitch, but it was also kind of cool. Not that she'd care to do it that often, mind you. 'This is amazing,' she said. In fact, the only thing that was different was that there was no Triquetra portal chalked on the East facing wall. But of course, there wouldn't be.

The three Halliwells' looked at one another in turn. Bianca was acting a little strangely, which led Paige to believe that she was more than a little woozy. Clearly, she was still suffering from the effects of the Manticore's crystal.

'Uh, Bianca, would you like to sit down? Rest up a little,' she offered.

The young woman turned and saw the look of concern on the faces of the three witches. She smiled. 'You're worried about me,' she said. 'But honestly, I'm fine.'

'Still,' Piper said sounding a little unsure, 'maybe you should let Paige tend to your wounds. We'd all feel happier if you did.'

Bianca shrugged, but nodded her head, anyway. She lifted up her shirt and Paige allowed her hands to hover over the deep cut in her side. Within moments, a warm, golden glow began to emanate from Paige's hands and pretty soon, it was as if the wound had never been there. But Paige still wasn't convinced that she was okay, because as she tugged the young woman's shirt back down, Bianca swayed, she was a little unsteady on her feet.

'C'mon,' she said, taking her arm and guiding her to the sofa, 'I think you need to sit down.'

Bianca didn't argue, she sat and leaned her head back against the sofa cushions and if she hadn't of been so wound up about being here and how incredible the whole experience was, she might have allowed herself the luxury of sleep. Man, time-travel took it out of a girl.

'She really doesn't look good,' Phoebe surmised.

'She's exhausted,' Paige said going back over to her sisters. 'The demon took it out of her. Maybe we should see if Leo can work his magic. I can't replenish the energy that the Manticore drained from her. It's too much for me.'

'You're right,' Piper nodded, still looking at Bianca, who was really fighting to keep her eyes open. She called for her husband and within moments bluish-white sparkling lights appeared and Leo orbed in. 'Hey, where were you?'

'Kitchen. Wyatt's taking a nap. What's up?' he asked.

Piper nodded her head in Bianca's direction. 'Her.'

Leo turned and saw the pretty dark-haired girl now dozing quietly on the sofa. He turned back to his wife and smiled. 'She looks harmless.'

'Ha! Says you. She just vanquished our demon with catnip,' Piper told him, forcing a groan from Paige's mouth. 'Can you believe that?'

'Catnip?' Leo queried. 'Strange. But at least it worked. So who is she?'

'My guess, she's a witch,' said Paige. 'Are we forgetting the potion, the spell? Besides, why else would the Manticore target her?'

'She could just be an innocent bystander who happened to get caught in the crossfire,' shrugged Phoebe.

'Hmm.' Piper looked at Phoebe. 'You getting anything off her?' she wondered. Along with levitation and the power of premonition, Phoebe was also an empath. She could sense what people were thinking and feeling.

Phoebe glanced at Bianca and closed her eyes for a few moments before turning back to Piper. 'Just that she's happy to be here.'

'Happy to be where? Here? In our attic?' asked Piper.

'Uhuh.'

'Huh. Now why would that be?'

'Because I have a hunch that she knows who we are,' Paige jumped in. 'I mean, the whole demon thing, the orbing and the healing - she hasn't been fazed by any of it. She's clearly a witch and she clearly knows we're witches. Usually our innocents, especially those of the non-magical variety, get a little freaked out by all our weird and wacky stuff.'

'And she hasn't,' Piper mused. 'Well, I guess it doesn't matter whether she's a Wiccan or not. She vanquished our demon, albeit with catnip - '

'Let it go,' Paige sighed.

' - but vanquished it all the same. That makes her our new best friend. For now anyway,' Piper finished as if Paige had never spoke." 'She looked back at her husband. 'The demon drained her energy, is there anything you can do?'

'I can try,' Leo said.

'Where's Chris?' Phoebe asked as Leo sat down beside Bianca and held his hands over her just like Paige had.

'One of his charges needed him,' he replied.

'Sure it wasn't just an excuse because he didn't want to be alone with you?' Phoebe said knowing how difficult it was for the two to be in the same room together, never mind alone together.

Leo shrugged. 'That's his problem.'

'Actually, y'know what, it isn't. It's _our_ problem,' she corrected. 'And he's right you know, we could be a bit nicer and try trusting him a little more.'

Piper spun her head around and cast her an odd look. 'Whoa. Where did _that_ come from?'

'Have you seen how exhausted he's making himself with the whole Saving Wyatt thing?'

Piper nodded. 'He did look pretty beat earlier.'

'Think about it,' continued Phoebe, 'would he really push himself _that_ hard, if he was some evil demon sent from the future to break us all apart?'

'I don't think that,' Paige said a little affronted. 'In fact, I'm probably the one person that's been super nice to him.'

'Super nice enough to rename him,' Piper reminded her.

'Well,' she shrugged, 'he can be, and is, a little...testy.'

Phoebe smiled. 'Yes he is. But if Paige feels that she can trust him, then why can't we all?'

'Well,' Paige shrugged again, 'not completely, but I don't _not_ trust him the way Leo does.'

'I have my concerns, Paige,' Leo said, still working his healing power on Bianca.

'Look, the point is,' Phoebe broke in, 'he's making himself ill to help us. To help _Wyatt_,' she pronounced looking directly at Piper.

Piper's left eyebrow shot up. 'Wow. That premonition's really bothering you still, huh?' she replied.

'I am confused as to why I got it when I touched him, yes,' she admitted. 'I mean, there's usually a connection between the object, or in this case the person, and the actual premonition.'

'So, you think that Chris is connected to Bianca? Is that what you're saying?' Paige said not sounding entirely sure of her own statement. 'Maybe she's one of his charges?'

'Possibly. I don't know, Paige,' said Phoebe. 'I just think we should ease up on him.'

Piper was slowly nodding her head. 'If he _was_ evil, then eight months is a long time for him to keep up the pretense without showing his true face.'

'Exactly.'

'But y'know, I still think it's strange that you can never get a read off him,' Piper added thoughtfully.

'Me too,' nodded Phoebe. 'But then, when do we ever get anything out of him?'

'True. Very true.'

What the sisters didn't know was that when Chris traveled back, knowing of his Aunt Phoebe's empathy power, he'd had no alternative but to cast a spell placing a block on any messages that could be transmitted from her to him and vice-versa. He couldn't afford for her to pick up on his true feelings and emotions. Not without blowing his cover and jeopardizing the future.

'So the general consensus is be a little nicer to Chris,' Paige spelled it out.

'And find out a little more about our new friend,' Piper said nodding over at the sofa. 'How's she doing, Leo?'

'How's who doing? What happened?'

Paige and Phoebe jumped at the sound of the voice. 'God, I'd wish you'd stop doing that, Chris!' Phoebe scolded and turned around to look at him.

The sparkling orbs had just faded away and Chris couldn't resist a mischievous grin. 'Sorry. So what's happening?'

Piper, who hadn't even flinched when Chris had orbed in, was standing with her arms folded over her belly, watching as Leo was still busy on Bianca. It sure was taking some time to restore her energy levels. 'We're waiting for our innocent to come round.'

'So you vanquished the demon?' Chris said stepping further into the room.

'No. She did.'

Chris's heart leaped up into his mouth when he saw the young woman lying back on the sofa, Leo's healing hands hovering over her. 'What the..._Bianca_?'

All three Halliwell sisters spun to look at him. 'Wait, so you know her?' said Piper.

'Aha!' Phoebe exclaimed, one finger shooting up into the air. 'I knew it! I knew there was a connection!'

Paige gave her a droll look. 'No, you didn't. I asked you that and you said you didn't know.'

'I was lying,' Phoebe said.

'Bad witch,' said Paige, shooting her a shifty look.

'I can't believe it...what's she...' Chris was too stunned to form words. 'Is she alright? Leo, what's wrong with her?' He moved quickly across the attic floor, quicker than the sisters had ever seen him move, and dropped to Bianca's side, taking her hand in his.

Phoebe and Piper exchanged a look of curiosity over the young Whitelighter's concern for the girl. While Paige just looked on at the unfolding scene pulling a thoughtful face. 'Wait a minute,' she said, 'if you know her and you're from the future, that means...'

'Yes, Paige, she's from the future, too,' Chris said, clearly agitated. He couldn't be bothered to explain, while Leo was still busy and no one was telling him what had happened.

'Well,' drawled Piper, 'are we expecting anymore of your friends to drop in, Chris?'

'She's more than that,' Chris said, his voice dropping to a whisper. He ran his eyes over Bianca's face. How many times over the last few months had he pictured her? Wished he could see her? Her smile? To hear the shrill tone in her voice when she was not best pleased about something he had done?

_So many times._

At Chris's admission, all three sisters exchanged a look. While Chris was growing more impatient.

'Leo, for crying out loud, what's wrong with her?'

'Ssh,' Leo hushed Chris. 'She's coming around. Give her a moment.'

'Yeah. Give the girl some room to breathe. She vanquished our Manticore,' added Paige.

'She did?' said Chris. 'Wait...Bianca was the girl you saw in your vision?'

'Right on,' confirmed Phoebe.

'That's...amazing,' he said. 'And a little...'

'Strange,' finished Paige. 'Yeah, and if we hadn't of gotten there in time - '

'Don't say it,' Chris warned, turning his head to look at her.

The three witches were all stunned by the obvious look of distress in his pale green eyes. 'Whoa, easy there, tiger,' Piper said gently. 'She's alive, isn't she?'

Bianca let out a soft moan and Chris whipped his head back to look at her. Gingerly, she lifted one hand and pressed it to her forehead. 'Ohhh...I feel just awful...'

'And now we know why. It wasn't just the Manticore,' Paige said.

'Time travel,' Leo added with a nod. 'Rips you to shreds.'

'Bianca?'

'Huh?' was her response to the gentle voice. Slowly, her eyes flickered open and for a moment her vision was blurred. All she could see was the outline of a head, but then a pair of the most gorgeous, pale green eyes came into focus and her face broke out into a smile. She eased herself forward and they caught each other up in a fierce hug.

'Oh god, Chris! I missed you so much,' Bianca whispered in his ear.

'Me too,' he said, closing his eyes and inhaling the warm, floral scent of her hair. There could be a hundred women in the same room and he'd be able to pick out her scent anywhere. But then he pulled back and stared hard at her. 'What the _hell_ are you doing here? Do you have any idea how dangerous it was for you to come here?'

'Do you have any idea how dangerous it was for _you_ to come here?' Bianca shot back, her eyes flashing.

'Whoa!' Paige eased back. 'Rapid emotion shift. Kinda reminds me of an episode of 'I Love Lucy'.'

'It's what we do,' Chris shot over his shoulder.

'Keeps us entertained,' Bianca added.

'Not just yourselves,' mused Phoebe and Paige nodded her agreement.

Chris and Bianca's eyes met again. 'Well?' he pressed.

'Well what?'

'Do you know how dangerous it - '

'Do you?' Bianca cut him off.

'I had to come, B. You know that.'

'And you know that I had to come, too.'

He softened then. So she had missed him as much as he had her. He let go of a sigh, raked a hand through his dark brown hair. _Man, you are so stubborn, Devlin_, he said in her head.

_Uhuh. Wanna hear my list now?_, she said in his, while grinning at him.

'You'll pay for that,' he replied out loud.

Phoebe was beginning to get confused. 'He hugs her one moment and issues threats in the next,' she whispered to her sisters. 'Anyone else picking up on how..._weird_ their relationship is?'

_Is that a promise?_

_Best believe it._

'Can't wait,' Bianca said.

'Oh, dear lord, there is something not right about these two,' Phoebe said shaking her head. 'It's twisted almost, don't you think?'

Bianca dragged her smiling eyes away from Chris's and looked over at the sisters. 'We share a telepathic link,' she explained. 'Sorry, should have mentioned that.'

'You can talk to one another in your heads?' Paige said, sounding very impressed. 'Wow. Now _that_ is a cool power.'

'Oh,' Phoebe rolled her eyes and sighed with relief, 'that's good to know. Coz I was seriously worried there.'

_We need to talk_, Chris said in Bianca's head. _But we seem to have an audience_. 'Let's get out of here.' He stood and offered her his hand, which she took.

'Wait a minute,' Piper said stepping forward. 'I'd like some answers.'

'Later, Piper,' Chris said and before she got a chance to argue he orbed Bianca and himself out.

Piper gasped. 'Well, of all the...'

'Leave it, Piper. It's obvious that they have things to talk about it,' Leo said.

'Okay, who are you and what have you done with my husband?' she turned on him.

'She obviously came for a reason.'

'Uhuh. And right after that, Phoebe got some pretty pictures in her head. There's a connection, Phoebe's right. There's some reason why she was sent that premonition.'

'Maybe it was just because Bianca is Chris's friend, Piper,' Paige said, trying to smooth the obvious tension which was beginning to build. Again. 'You saw how happy he was before they went all 'I Love Lucy'. It's obvious there's a deep bond there.'

'Paige is onto something,' nodded Phoebe. 'If she'd come here to see him for whatever reason and got herself killed, that could of in some way thrown off Chris's destiny. Maybe even ours. I don't know. She had to come here. And we had to be there to save her.'

'Only we_ didn't_,' Piper reminded them all and she wasn't being gentle about it. 'She saved us, remember?'

'Okay, then let me put another spin on it,' sighed Paige wondering why Piper couldn't just let it go and accept that the girl was here for a reason and that reason, no doubt, would be revealed in its own good time. 'Maybe she had to come here to vanquish that demon for us. Because let's face it, we weren't getting anywhere with a vanquishing potion.'

'I agree,' Phoebe said. 'She was incredible back there. In spite of the way she was feeling, she just got on with it. Kinda admire that in a person.'

'Look,' Piper sighed heavily, closing her eyes only briefly, 'I'm not saying the girl is bad or anything, all I'm saying is - '

'You don't trust her?' Leo cut in.

'Actually, and I don't know why, but I _do_. It's just, it's all a bit much to take in. People arriving from the future, our son turning evil in the future, people from the future vanquishing powerful demons with catnip...'

Paige groaned. Not the catnip thing again. She turned on her heels and made for the attic door. 'I hear Wyatt,' she said. 'Leo, wanna come with?'

'Huh?'

'To check on Wyatt.'

'Uh, can't you...do that?'

'Yes, but I'd like for you to join me.'

'Huh?'

Paige groaned inwardly. Sometimes, for an Elder, he could be so dense. Couldn't he see she wanted to talk to him in private? 'Leo!' she said sharply.

'She wants you to go with her because she wants to talk to you about my weird behavior these last few hours,' Piper said, breaking it down for him.

'What? Do we have a telepathic link, too?' Paige said planting her hands on her hips.

'You want to kiss the sky and thank the good Lord we don't. Some of the things that are thought in this house,' Piper replied.

Phoebe chuckled. 'Yeah. Like last week, when you were in the bathroom and you dropped Paige's toothbrush down the toilet and just plucked it right back on out again and shook it off, thinking she'd never notice?'

Paige gasped. 'What? You did that? E_wwwww_!'

Piper shot her a scowl. 'Big mouth.'

'Empath. Actually,' Phoebe grinned back. 'You felt bad about it all day.'

'What were you doing with my toothbrush anyway?' Paige wanted to know.

'I thought it was mine. Next time we go shopping we're buying 'Label-It's'.'

'Wait, you used it, too?'

Piper sighed in exasperation and shot Phoebe a look for opening her big empath mouth. 'No. I thought it was mine, realised it wasn't and then as I was about to put it back in the tumbler, I dropped - Oh, it doesn't matter. Go see to your nephew.'

'Hmph,' was Paige's reply as she flounced out of the attic, with Leo on her tail. Phoebe was chuckling quietly to herself.

'Watch it,' Piper eyed her, 'or next time you could find _your_ toothbrush down the pan.'


	5. Someone To Watch Over Me

_Hi guys! Just to reiterate the Bianca in my story is NOT the Bianca from the show. Tbh I never liked her. =P Enjoy!_

* * *

**Someone To Watch Over Me**

Chris had orbed himself and Bianca to a place where he knew they would be guaranteed peace and privacy. In fact, the only thing that was likely to disturb them would be the birds. He had orbed them to the top of the orange towers on the Golden Gate Bridge.

When Bianca's feet touched solid ground - or in this case, steel - realizing where they were, she smiled at him. 'This is new,' she said, the wind whipping her hair about her face. 'Why here?'

'Why do you think?' he smiled back. They were still holding hands and Chris found he was somewhat reluctant to let go. So for now, he didn't. 'You nervous?'

'No.'

'You're not? You're standing on the top of a bridge that's over four-thousand-feet tall and you're not a little bit nervous?'

She pushed a lock of her hair back. 'I'm with you, aren't I? Should I fall, I know you'll catch me.'

'Always.'

There was something in the way he said it, the way his mouth seemed to draw out the word that caused her heart rate to kick up a notch. He was just being Chris she knew, it was the way he was with her. She shouldn't read anything into it. But she knew it was hopeless. They'd been best friends for six years and he had never shown her the kind of interest that she wished he would. To Chris, she was B, his best friend, his soul mate and she knew she should be content with that. And she was. He cared for her more than any boyfriend ever could. He would never hurt her, he knew her inside out and was so fiercely protective of her that she knew if it came down to it, he would give over his life to save hers.

These tiny factors, however, only succeeded in making her love him more. So much so, that when she had realized her true feelings for him, she had resorted to making a potion that would block any embarrassing 'love' signals he might receive from her. She made a fresh batch of the love-blocker every week and drank the potion every morning. She was safe in the knowledge that whenever she got all misty over him, he wouldn't be aware of it. Except, when she'd left the future it had been the one thing she'd forgotten to pack...She would have to take extra care with her thoughts from now on.

'Well, alright then,' she said and took a moment to absorb the view which was quite possibly the most incredible thing she had ever witnessed, the tower looked out over the entire city; a sprawling mass which surprisingly, up here, looked kind of beautiful. 'Wow.'

'Yeah,' Chris agreed. 'It's even better at night.'

'I'll look forward to it.'

He smiled, taking the comment, as it was intended, that she was staying and there would be no bargaining chip or arguments. He let go of her hand, put his arm around her shoulder, drawing her closer to him. 'Leo comes up here a lot, although he prefers the other tower. You can see the bright lights and the glitz of Los Angeles apparently. I like this end better.'

'You prefer the cultured sights of cable car city.'

'I like the solitude.'

She looked up at him and his eyes met hers. She realized for the first time, how tired he looked. He was definitely a lot thinner than the last time they'd been together. But his eyes still sparkled and she knew he was still her Chris. 'You wanna talk?'

'To you, always. Being here all this time, without anyone to talk to...'

'I'm here now.'

'Yeah,' he said softly. 'I'm glad you're here.'

'Me too. I had to come.'

'You put yourself at risk.'

'I'm here, aren't I?' She twisted herself round so that she was facing him, his arm still draped around her shoulder and she looked up into his eyes. 'The day you left, when that portal opened and you stepped inside, you have no idea how terrified I was. Not knowing if you'd made it or if I'd even see you again and every day I prayed for you. I prayed for you to come back. Just like being here for you was lonely, being back there without you was hell and I didn't want to spend another moment on my own. I know you're mad at me for coming, but don't you see, I had to? I _had_ to know that you were alright.'

His smile was gentle as he tenderly swept her hair away from her face. 'I got lucky the day I met you. I've never had anyone care about me so much.'

'You know that's not true. Your mom, she...' Seeing the sudden flash of pain in his pale green eyes, made her stop. Something went through her, too. Pierced her heart and made her ache so badly. In their future, Piper had died almost five years ago. She hadn't been at the manor the day it had happened, she'd been at school that warm June afternoon. But Chris had. And after the demon had attacked, taken Wyatt and left him for dead, he had come round, shell-shocked and broken, to find his mother lying dead at the foot of the stairs. It had been too late for him to heal her.

Bianca tried to push away the memory of what had been waiting for her when she arrived home later that day and even though she'd sensed, knew that something was so terribly wrong; still she hadn't been prepared for it. Nothing in the world, not even living through the agony of seeing her own parents killed, had prepared her for it. The memory of Chris sitting on the bottom stair, rocking his dead mother back and forth in his arms, the tears and the anguish that racked his body was something Bianca would never forget.

Chris, Leo and Wyatt were the only three left. And when finally they had brought Wyatt back home to safety, he too was a changed man; his mother's death had affected him as much as it had Chris. But where Chris had dedicated his life, her memory, to fighting evil and trying to make the world a better place, Wyatt had chosen a different path. The path of evil. Not even Leo could have prevented it from happening. He had too much of his own pain and rage, he was too wrapped up in grief for him to realise that he had lost one son and if he continued to distance himself from his youngest, the one who needed him the most, he was on the verge of losing another, too.

And that was Chris's life. That was what he lived with every day. The death of the mother that he adored more than any one thing, the brother who wanted him dead and would stop at nothing until he had succeeded and the estranged father who after losing his wife, had given up on everything he had ever known.

'I didn't mean...' she apologized gently.

'It's okay. I know you didn't,' he said. 'C'mon, let's sit.'

They sat down leaning their backs against the iron girder of the tower. Chris sat with his knees drawn up, his wrists resting loosely on them. He was quiet for a moment and Bianca just waited. She knew the look and his body language meant he needed to talk.

'When I first came here,' he began, 'when I came through that portal and saw her...it was like I'd never lost her. All I wanted to do was tell her much I loved and missed her, but of course, I couldn't. I had to pull myself together and pretty fast. I had to push all the feeling, all the emotions right out of my head. I'd come here to do a job and I knew it was gonna be hard seeing her again, B...' He turned his head and looked at Bianca, swallowed. 'But not like this. I never expected it to feel like_ this_.'

Bianca moved closer to him, reaching out she wrapped her hands around his. And he was grateful for it. He was grateful for her strength, that she was here, that he had someone to share it all with. That it was her.

'And having to keep it all in,' he went on, 'not being able to tell her who I was...it makes it all harder still. And I'm terrified.'

'Of what?'

'Of getting close to her again. Knowing that the day's coming when I have to go back to where she isn't.'

His words sliced into her, sent a fresh stab of pain, which cut deep into her heart. 'And I get that,' she said softly. 'But maybe that's the exact reason why you should get close to her.'

He met her eyes and she slowly nodded.

'Even though she has absolutely no idea who I am?' he said.

'Maybe it's time you told her.'

'No,' Chris said vehemently, 'I can't do that. Besides, they're not ready to face the truth, not yet. Maybe not ever.'

'How do you know?'

'They don't trust me as it is, B. If I tell them who I am, then - '

'They'll start trusting you.'

He looked at her and sighed. 'No.'

'You _know_ Piper, Chris,' she argued. 'Probably better than anyone. And you know she always gives a person a fair chance. If you tell her that you're her son, she's going to believe you. She wouldn't turn away from you, you know that. And by telling her who you are, makes no difference whatsoever to any future consequence. So long as we do what we have to and get back home before you're born.'

Without moving his head, he slid his eyes in her direction. 'Got it all worked out. Just like that, huh?'

She smiled at him. 'You know what I would give to see my parents again, to have just one more day with them, right? You've been given that chance, Chris. Although you came here with the sole intention of saving Wyatt, this tiny, precious parcel of time belongs to you and I don't think you should waste it. You can make something wonderful happen here. Think about how you'll feel when we get back home, knowing that you never told her who you were, denying yourself the chance to get close to her again. Chris, please, you have to tell her.'

Chris let go of a heavy sigh and raked one hand over his face. 'I'd forgotten how persuasive you could be.'

'I just figured you needed to hear a different spin,' she told him and when he looked at her, she shrugged and smiled.

Even though he was smiling, in his head he said, _You_ _don't understand. What it's like to keep a secret. The burden of it all._

_So unburden yourself. Tell her. Don't carry it around with you the rest of the time you're here, _she replied.

They shared a look.

'And for your information,' she said to him, 'I know exactly what it's like.'

His look was questioning. 'You've got a secret?'

'Maybe.'

'So tell me already.'

'Then it wouldn't be a secret. And besides, I don't have to tell you everything, do I?' she said throwing in a grin.

'And there was me thinking that the number one rule of our friendship was to tell each other everything.'

'No, sweetie, the number one rule for our friendship is there are no rules,' she said.

He chuckled. 'C'mere you,' he said and pulled her against him. She dropped her head on his shoulder and he pressed a kiss to her hair. 'Let's deal with Wyatt first and then I'll talk to Piper and Leo. I promise.'

'That's something else,' she said lifting her head once again, 'Wyatt. Do you know how easy it was for me to come here?'

'I know what you're saying, he could follow you.'

'All he needs to do is go up to the attic and find the portal.'

'He can't get into the manor remember? We cast a spell stopping him from - Okay, why are you shaking your head?'

'Two months after you left, I was up in the attic making potions and he appeared. Like a ghostly apparition. I got freaked and realized he was attempting to break through the spell. Sure enough, a few days later he showed up in the flesh.'

'Did he hurt you?' Chris asked, frowning.

'No. Well, he might have thrown me around some, but y'know me, I can take a beating.'

Chris exhaled heavily. 'So all he needs to do is put two and two together...wait, the potion, if you left some lying around then that's giving him a free ticket - '

'Don't worry. I used one lot to get here, one to vanquish that ugly crystal-touting demon and I have one spare. The rest I poured away. But you know Wyatt, Chris, he'll find a way and _Oh_ _God_, what have I _done_?'

Chris was confused by her sudden exclamation. 'What?'

'I should have stayed home. Now with us both gone, he's gonna know that something's not right and he's going to come looking for us. I've ruined everything! I'm such an idiot!' she protested, suddenly realizing that coming here - as she first thought - really wasn't the best idea she'd had, after all.

'Hey,' Chris said and the tone of his voice made her look at him. 'First up, don't call yourself that, you're the second smartest person I know. Despite how pissed I was earlier I'm glad you came and regardless of you coming here he would have cottoned on eventually and showed up at some point and lastly, we'll deal with whatever comes next. Just like we always do.'

'Second smartest?'

Chris grinned. 'Well, obviously, I'm the first.'

She rolled her eyes at him, but then her look turned serious. 'So you think he _will_ come?' she coded.

Chris let go of another sigh. 'You said it yourself, B. I _know_ Wyatt. So, yeah...give him time. He'll show up sooner or later.'

'And then what?'

'And then,' Chris said looking out over the San Francisco Bay, 'we let destiny take care of itself.'


End file.
